Lionel Messi has had to pay an additional €10 million in taxes for unpaid image rights between 2010 and 2011 according to reports in Spain. According to Catalan newspaper La Vanguardia, Messi is also looking to reach a settlement on an unpaid €4.1 million which dates from the period between 2007 and 2009 to avoid a potential court date.
Messi and his father, Jorge, are due to appear at a court hearing in the Catalan town of Gava on Sept. 17 in relation to claims that the pair and their financial advisers, had illegally rerouted image-rights revenues through offshore tax havens to avoid paying taxes due in Spain on such income.
The Barcelona striker is not the first sports star to be investigated for tax irregularities as Spain looks to crack down on tax evasion amid the recession. Last year former Real Madrid star Luis Figo was forced to pay €2.45 million in income tax pertaining to image rights from 1997 to 1999 while he was playing for Barcelona. In 2009, former multiple Grand Slam tennis champion Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario had to pay millions in back taxes.
[ESPN FC]
